RV Having Fun Yet?: Week Two In the Books

Today ends the second week of our three-week stint here in central Florida. Two weeks, just like that. One to go. We were talking as a group about where everyone is headed next. Most of the couples are headed to another project close by for February, one couple is staying here for another month. When we said we are going home, we got some incredulous looks from some of the others.

You mean you are going back to Michigan ... in February?

They thought we were crazy. In one sense, we are crazy. Working outdoors in shirt sleeves, enjoying abundant sunshine, longer days, cool nights as opposed to shoveling snow, temperatures below freezing, and cloudy days for weeks at a time; small wonder the Florida projects fill up as soon as they are posted. One couple here just joined the SOWERs last fall and are doing six projects in a row. Six months, living out of their little trailer with their dog and two cats. A few others are full-timers, with large RVs and towed vehicles. Park the RV for three weeks and use the car for running around.

And then there’s us. Our little RV is also our runabout vehicle. We have no slide-outs, so floor space is at a premium. Storage space is especially valuable, particularly when it comes to food. Since inexpensive food is difficult to find on the road, we pack along as much as we can. And the meals have to get a bit creative at times because not all of the ingredients can be taken along.

We had tater-tot casserole yesterday. With no tater tots. That kind of stuff would take far too much room in the freezer. Instead, Deb cubed up a few potatoes and used those instead. We also don’t have an oven, so this was done in the Omnia on the stovetop. We’re still dialing in how to use this so it was an experiment, a balancing act between the amount of liquid used in the recipe and the amount of heat applied on the stove. The results could be burned, dry, soupy, runny, or anything in between. Deb had to cook it a little longer than originally planned to simmer some of the liquid out, but, in the end, it was delicious.

Today it was tacos made with taco pockets, a tortilla formed into a pocket into which the taco stuff can be put. Deb found these at a grocery store in Shipshewana last time we were there. This was one thing that didn’t have to be frozen or refrigerated, so it came along. It was a little bit different, eating a taco using a tortilla shaped like a cup, but the juices didn’t run out all over the place so the plate remained relatively clean. I called it a taco diaper. Another successful RV meal.

So we eat well, in spite of all the experimentation that goes on and the tiny galley where these experiments are performed. We do make use of all the available space.

The work today was similar to yesterday. More lights. I’m sure when this is all done we will be able to see this place from outer space. I added another super-bright LED light over the pool area and one in one of the “hammocks”, which here in the south is not a net-like thing strung between two trees that you sleep in. It’s an area of land, depending on who you talk to, that’s either bordered by water or just some land “over there”. One of the hammocks here was not well lit, so I put another one of the super-bright fixtures on a pole to light it up.

I was close to finishing this one up when I discovered that the lift would not go down. All the controls were dead. I had to call one of the other guys over to use the ground controls to get me down. That ended the lift-work for the day but the day was almost done anyway. It sounds like next week I’ll be lighting up another hammock, and possibly the volleyball area if we can get something to help dig a 100-foot long trench for the wire.

So the lighting still isn’t done.

We had a game night this evening and played Clear the Deck for a good part of the evening. A great card game for groups and appears to be a SOWER standard.

We’re leaving early tomorrow morning for the big RV show in Tampa. I think most of the other couples are going as well.